


Come Find Me

by saisei



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, M/M, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-13
Updated: 2019-01-13
Packaged: 2019-10-09 11:42:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,491
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17406278
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/saisei/pseuds/saisei
Summary: Prompto sees Ignis' soul-light the moment they first meet; Ignis doesn't. Prompto knows that not everyone's guaranteed a happy life with their soul-partner, but he's glad to be able to be friends. He doesn't mind knowing he can never have more.





	Come Find Me

Prompto's never believed soul-light was a thing that could happen to him. He's fine with that: his parents, after all, were still together after thirty-some years, even though they'd never seen each others' soul-lights. They're happy, enjoying being together so much that Prompto feels like he's an intruder, sometimes. And he thinks that it's probably true if you lose your soul-light partner, you'll never find anyone else who can know you that way. Look at Gladio and Noct's dads, still grieving the loss of their light.

He sure as fuck never expected he'd end up that romance-novel staple, an 18-year-old virgin who saw his destined partner walking slowly across a crowded room (well, gaming arcade) toward him, haloed in the most amazing... glow? Aura? Now that he's seen soul-light he has no idea how to describe it, the shift of gold and green light that surrounds – 

"Ignis," Noct calls, and waves to catch the man's attention. "Help."

"You need to prepare for tomorrow's meeting," Ignis says, and even his disapproval is beautiful.

"Clear this level for me?" Noct begs, and Ignis sighs deeply. But he lets Noct hand off the controls and – with perfect effortlessness and a deeply unimpressed expression – does exactly that and then loses the game on purpose so they can leave.

Prompto is in love.

He shakes Ignis' hand on automatic when Noct introduces them, and follows them outside.

"Dude, you're staring," Noct leans close to say, bumping Prompto with his shoulder.

"He's really... tall." Which is such a lame excuse, but it's better than admitting the truth, which seems to be that Ignis doesn't see anything special in Prompto at all.

Noct laughs. "You can say _handsome_ , he's vain, he'd like that."

"He can also hear you," Ignis says. "Would you like a ride home, Prompto?"

"No-thanks-I'm-good!" Prompto yelps, and waves with both hands before spinning on his heel and taking off.

So. That happened.

Except in the next few days and weeks, Ignis continues not to give any indication that he can see Prompto's soul-light. He Moogle-searches intensively, finding all kinds of horrific stories about people without partners, or who got the wrong partner, or who were in love with someone else when they found their match. He finally breaks down and asks his mom, using layers of hypotheticals and examples so she doesn't figure out he's asking for real.

"Baby," his mom says, giving him a one-armed hug that he returns awkwardly. It's _weird_ being a head taller now. "Did you know we were chosen to be your parents _because_ Nin and I aren't soul-partners? They thought... well. The odds are worse for people who were abused like you were. You didn't know how to be _held_." Her arm tightens around his back. "You couldn't eat normally for months. And now you're all grown up, and I hope you know anyone with eyes can see how good your heart is. Whether or not they ever see your soul-light."

Prompto grumbles that she's embarrassing him, but he doesn't break the hug. He feels better and worse, in a confusing mix: reassured that he's lovable, but also half-wondering if he even has a soul, considering it says right on his arm that he's not human.

*

Ignis never stops glowing, but Prompto plays it cool and over time they become good friends. Even though at first he falls for Ignis' act, all cool and aloof, pretty soon he realizes Ignis is just as big of a nerd as Noct, under his trendy tailored clothes. He makes terrible jokes and Prompto thinks he's lonely. When he starts Crownsguard training, he discovers how deadly Ignis is as well.

He finds himself flipped for the third time, hitting the mat with an _oof_ and blinking up in surprise until Gladio leans over him.

"I'm rescheduling your hand-to-hand," Gladio says. "You're kind of distracted."

"Have you _seen_ him?" Prompto hisses. Ignis goes flying through the air just then, and both Prompto and Gladio turn their heads in time to see three practice dummies lose their heads.

"Get here at seven," Gladio says on a sigh. "The things I do for you."

Prompto's actually fine with getting a reputation for being thirsty, for having the world's biggest crush, for being clumsy and flustered in Ignis' presence. Gladio and Noct tease and Ignis does him the courtesy of not noticing, but as far as he can tell they assume he's thinking with his dick.

That's infinitely better than being pitied for not being seen in return.

When the royal wedding is arranged, the media goes nuts, interviewing experts and psychics for their opinion on whether Noct and Luna will see their soul-lights when they meet. There are debates about whether that would be good for the nation or bad. Noct despises the speculation, and Prompto's pretty sure that's why the King sends them off; otherwise, it was just a matter of time before Noct told them all to fuck off, live and on camera.

*

The roadtrip is terrible and amazing, the best days of his life entangled with gutting horror and fear and loss. He gets to sit next to Ignis in the car and help him with dinner at night, and if he just mentally edited Gladio and Noct's presences out it'd be like going on dates every day. Except for all the monsters that keep trying to kill them, and Insomnia being destroyed, and the nagging worry that Noct was in serious trouble. The ancestral swords were bad enough, but then he had to hobnob with the Astrals themselves.

Prompto can still lie to himself that the world is not ending right up until Altissia, when a bridge breaks and Ignis falls. Prompto's too busy digging Gladio out of rubble and then fighting Imperials to look for him, but he feels – he's ninety-nine percent sure this isn't just his anxiety – the place where he sees Ignis' soul-light pull away and thin, like an elastic near to breaking. Yanking _back_ on it hard is pure instinct, the same way he knows how to fly air-bikes. The effort of keeping that firm grip on Ignis and fighting at the same time sucks his energy down like he was hit by a spell, and he's wobbly by the time he runs into Gladio and gets hauled off to the altar.

After that he's just numb. He carries Noct back to the hotel; the doctor comes and leaves; Noct's deep asleep and Luna is dead and the glory of light that's always surrounded Ignis is dim and guttering. Gladio's so worried sick about Ignis and Noct that he's shaking, pacing between their rooms, until Prompto finally tells him to just stay with Noct. Shield him.

"I got this," Prompto says.

He's got nothing, really. But he must fake confidence fairly well, because Gladio's shoulders drop and he gives Prompto a look that's almost grateful.

Prompto watches over Ignis. The doctor said that was all anyone could do; take care of him, and let time heal his wounds. He wakes a few times, always confused. Sometimes he calls for his mother, but mostly for Noct.

Prompto hangs onto his hand and says, "I'm here," and lets Ignis' imagination fill in the blanks.

When Ignis wakes for real, he figures out immediately that his eyes don't work, hands going to his face and mapping the damage. He wants to get up anyway, start adjusting to how his life's going to be from now on. Prompto says that's great, but he's still going into the shower with him.

They figure out a system for Ignis to dress himself, and get his phone adapted, and take walks in the hotel and outside with an occupational therapist who's apologetic about not having the right kind of cane on hand.

Ignis, picking his way through rubble while Prompto frets about him tumbling off the shattered sidewalk into the canal, shakes his head. " I am grateful," he says. He takes a breath as if he wants to add more, but then shuts his mouth firmly.

Noct wakes a couple of days later, and then things are tense and horrible on two fronts. Noct gets out of bed and starts making plans for them to leave, and snaps at Gladio and Ignis pretty much no matter what they say. When Gladio's had enough, he storms out to go burn off his anger clearing roads and building tents. Ignis just gets quiet, which makes Noct look all guilty and hurt.

"Someone needs to talk to Noct about Luna," Prompto says to Ignis that night as they're getting ready for bed.

Ignis sighs. "I know. But he won't hear it from me, and Gladio's being an ass."

"Don't look at me," Prompto says before he remembers, and then he bites his lips together to keep from blurting out apologies.

Ignis turns his head, though, cocked to the side slightly. His left eye can't stay open, but the right stares straight at Prompto, almost like – 

"Come here," Ignis says, and he keeps watching Prompto as he comes around from the far side of his bed to sit just across from Ignis, their knees nearly touching. Ignis reaches out, frowning in concentration, and touches Prompto's shoulder briefly before pulling back. "I _can_ see you," he says slowly. "Or at least, something akin to a blur in the darkness. But not Gladio, or Noct. Only you."

"Yeah," Prompto says. "About that." He swallows hard. "You're my soul-partner. I've been able to see your light for years. You were dying, and I could see that light going out, and I just. Pulled as hard as I could. I'm _sorry_ ," he went on, in the face of Ignis' stony silence. "I didn't know this would happen."

"Would you please change rooms with Gladio tonight," Ignis says, toneless with what Prompto assumes is fury. Which makes sense considering Prompto just forced a soul-partnership on him and probably destroyed any chance Ignis had had of finding whoever he might have been destined for. Prompto sucks.

He gets up, manages to explain something to Gladio, and then must look super-pitiful because Noct tells him to crawl into bed with him. They end up crying all over each other, which is kind of cathartic, except Prompto wakes up with a killer headache, feeling hollowed-out inside.

Ignis doesn't talk to Prompto for the next few days, but they're busy with packing up and buying supplies, so he's got time to adjust. And then they're on the train and Ignis is forced into Prompto's orbit because Noct and Gladio are at it again. It's no surprise at all that Ignis blows up at them later. They spend one night in Cartanica after that, and the mood is lighter, almost hopeful. Like Noct is moving on and Gladio isn't scared, and Ignis makes tentative jokes over dinner that nearly have Prompto bawling again.

Cid was right, they're family of some kind, and nothing hurts worse than when they're at each others' throats. Prompto thinks about suggesting a group hug.

He really should have, he thinks later. Because after that Ardyn has him, one way or another. He gets in Prompto's head the way the cold gets in his bones, lets him have hope and then laughs as it turns out to be just another trick. By the time Noct comes to rescue him from the cell in Zegnautus Keep, Prompto is almost used to his friends turning up to save him and then insulting him or explaining at length how they never really were friends in the first place. But... this time all three of them are together, and Ignis looks – Prompto blinks up from where he'd fallen to his knees – like he's on fire, the gold around him flickering with angry red.

Ardyn had always done a great job mimicking Ignis' speech, but he'd always given himself away by never replicating the soul-light. Therefore, this is the real Ignis, and Prompto is being rescued for real, and Noct really is sorry. Prompto stumbles to his feet, and immediately Ignis reaches out his hand.

"I wasn't sure I'd see you again," he says.

Prompto's eyes are going watery, but he grins as he grabs hold. "You're a sight for sore eyes yourself." Ignis tugs, a tentative invitation, and Prompto is all over that, taking a step forward and throwing his arms around Ignis, face pressed into his chest and breathing deep as Ignis returns the embrace. Prompto only realizes how cold he still is when he's surrounded by Ignis' warmth. And then Ignis tips his chin up and kisses him and well, Prompto's on fire himself now.

Distantly, he hears Noct say _Holy fuck_ , answered by Gladio's amused-sounding _Well, that's new._

"Guys," Noct says, perhaps some time later. "Get a room. Not this room, it's creepy."

"Why?" Ignis asks sharply, and boy, that is not a question Prompto wants anyone to answer. He wants to stay in the warm present and not think (ever again) about Ardyn's little torture playground.

"Is there a shower somewhere?" Prompto asks. He doesn't even need to act, he really is that desperate. "And maybe food?"

"We passed dorm rooms coming here," Gladio says. "I'd feel safer holing up there anyway."

Noct nods, and moves toward the door, tapping his knuckles lightly against Prompto's shoulder as he passes. "You owe me the whole story," he says in passing. "I can't believe neither of you told me."

"It happened in Altissia," Ignis says, pretty smoothly for a guy who keeps running one hand across the back of Prompto's shoulders like a compulsion. "It hardly seemed appropriate – "

Noct closes his eyes for a second, but when he opens them again there's fondness as well as pain. "I appreciate that, Specs, but now that the cat's out of the bag, I'd love to hear one happy thing that came out of that whole disaster."

"So wait," Gladio says, nudging them all out into the corridor and taking point as they walk. "You can still see his soul-light? Even now?"

"Only now," Ignis corrects. "Never... before."

"Dude," Noct says, half-turning back to squint up at him. " _Dude._ Poor Prompto's had a thing for you for ages."

"I'll endeavor to make it up to him," Ignis says. With his typical way with words, he sounds both like he's telling Noct off for being rude and like he's hinting about doing something unimaginably lewd.

Prompto can't help himself; he bursts out laughing, hand slapped over his mouth so they don't attract any monsters.

"Pipe down, pipsqueak," Gladio says, which just makes Prompto lose it even more.

But Ignis catches hold of him and pulls him in to his side, letting Prompto smother his budding hysteria in his shoulder until he feels cocooned in safety. He can see, or imagines he sees, the bright overlap where his soul-light meets Ignis', each all the brighter for the presence of the other.


End file.
